PNP candidates received over 50 % of the Express Entry ITAs last year. According to IRCC, 19,160 ITAs were issued to the candidates under the Provincial Nominee Program. Additionally, the total number of invitations that the candidates received in 2022 was around 37,315. Furthermore, 51 percent of ITAs were issued to PNP candidates in 2022.
Inviting to apply candidates implies that IRCC acknowledges a candidate’s possibility of Permanent Residence, and they must apply for PR to IRCC. Hereafter, the IRCC will review the PR application and determine whether it will be approved.
According to IRCCs latest data, there is more emphasis on Enhanced PNP Nominations. This also includes the provincial ITAs and the CRS scores.
PNP candidates received over 50 % of Express Entry ITAs- what about the CRS score?
Nearly 17,905 candidates received an invitation to apply last year, and their CRS scores ranged between 491 and 600. The rest of the 19,160 candidates had CRS scores above 600 under Express Entry, having an Enhanced Provincial Nomination.
Enhanced Nomination indicates that the Express Entry pool candidate receives an expression of interest through a province. The province selects these candidates based on their ability to integrate well into their provincial economy. Also, a candidate can not score higher than 600 under the Comprehensive Ranking System unless they have a Provincial Nomination.
Program Invitations
Apart from PNP, the Canadian Experience Class candidates received the maximum invitations. 12, 960 candidates received ITAs. IRCC sent ITAs to 5,200 candidates under the Federal Skilled Worker Program. In 2022, the Federal Skilled Trades Program candidates didn’t receive any invitations.
FSWP candidates require at least one year of full-time work experience or any other equivalent work experience in the previous ten years. This work experience must fall under the National Occupational category of TEER 0, 1, or 2. They will also need to demonstrate the Canadian Language Benchmark test scores of a minimum of 7. This could be in the French or English language test ability in all four aspects: Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening.
Further, FSWP candidates must have a score of 67 points out of 100, per the FSWP grid. This grid is responsible for the evaluation of candidates based on different factors. These include education, work experience, age, language ability, adaptability, and arranged employment. Additionally, candidates must fulfill the settlement funds requirement, proving that they have sufficient finances to secure their dependents or family members.
The CEC candidates under the Express Entry system will need to demonstrate one year of work experience on a full-time basis. This work experience must be within the past 36 months with a CLB score of 5 and applies to candidates under NOC TEER categories 2 or 3. CLB score of 7 applies to candidates under NOC TEER 0 or 1. Usually, CEC candidates who apply for PR are those who live and work in Canada as temporary residents.
Provincial Invitations
In 2022, the type of ITAs and their number depended upon the province based on the intended destination. The most preferred province destination of residence was Ontario, and the number of candidates was 17,920. Of these candidates, 8,990 CEC candidates with an invitation to apply wished to settle in this province. Moreover, it is the only province where the number of CEC candidates surpassed the PNP candidates who wanted to settle here.
Among the Express Entry candidates, British Columbia emerged as the second preferred destination. Nearly 4,240 PNP candidates received ITAs. This is among the total number of all-program 7,495 candidates who wished to settle in this province.
Nearly 4,655 candidates with ITAs intended to settle in Alberta, and 2,195 candidates with ITAs preferred to settle in Manitoba. The remaining provinces issued lesser than 2,000 ITAs to candidates. Meanwhile, Newfoundland and Labrador witnessed just 345 ITAs, and the territories sent only 50 ITAs.
Province’s Enhanced Nominations
IRCC sent the most number of ITAs to Express Entry candidates who possessed an Enhanced PNP Nomination. However, Quebec remains an exception as it has separate criteria for selecting candidates under economic immigration. This is irrespective of the program based on its agreement with the federal government.
| Province | Number of Nominations |
|---|---|
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 305 |
| Prince Edward Island | 385 |
| Nova Scotia | 1,620 |
| New Brunswick | 775 |
| Ontario | 5,170 |
| Manitoba | 1,995 |
| Saskatchewan | 1,235 |
| Alberta | 3,385 |
| British Columbia | 4,240 |
| Yukon | 25 |
| Northwest Territories | 15 |
| Total | 19,160 |
A rise in the PNP allocations
Last year in November, with the announcement regarding the Immigration Levels Plan for 2023-2025, the immigration targets will increase. According to the latest targets, Canada will welcome more than 105,000 new Permanent Residents under the PNP. However, it will also receive 117,500 annually until 2025. These targets are the highest until now under the economic immigration program and those under the Express Entry system.
After the FMRI meeting, IRCC declared that they would increase the PNP allocations. This is yet another measure apart from the multi-year level plan for provincial immigration. This specific plan aims to make the provinces aware of the number of candidates they will be receiving annually for the upcoming three years. This will help the provinces plan their immigration targets so that they can benefit from immigration for the overall population growth.
In 2022, Ontario welcomed nearly 9,750 new immigrants under the PNP 2022, and in 2023, there was a remarkable increase in PNP allocations, up to 16,500. Ontario is the only Canadian province with the maximum population and receives 40 percent of new immigrants annually. Ontario’s PNP target will soon increase to more than 18,000 by the end of 2025.
Besides this, the rest of the Canadian provinces are also able to benefit from these increased targets.
For instance, Manitoba’s PNP allocations increased by 3,175 spots in 2022. Additionally, Saskatchewan and Alberta reported a massive increase in PNP allocations over the three upcoming years. Saskatchewan’s PNP will rise as high as 8,500 spots, and Alberta will see a growth of 10,849 by 2025.
PNP candidates received over 50 % of Express Entry ITAs- What about Express Entry in 2023?
This year during the Express Entry draws, candidates have received a total of 37,559 ITAs. Interestingly, this figure has surpassed the total number of invitations issued in 2022. Additionally, there have been only two Express Entry all-program draws between January and March. The rest of the draws emerged to be program-specific; three were PNP, and one was the FSWP. IRCC conducted the first all-program draw out of a total of three draws on March 15. Also, 7,000 candidates received invitations in all three draws, and candidates under all programs gained consideration.
Between March 15 and March 29, the maximum ITAs were issued (nearly 21,000) in the three consecutive draws. Sean Fraser declared that IRCC would soon conduct Express Entry targeted candidates based on the following factors such as work experience, education, language skills, and other characteristics that will financially contribute to Canada.
